Of course, there is also also a plethora of terrible, embarrassing amendments filed by Republicans. Will the basest elements of the GOP prevail?

Homophobia and Misogyny: Rep. Bill Zedler filed an amendment to eliminate LGBT resource centers on state university and college campuses. The amendment would also eliminate state funding for women's centers and all gender and sexuality centers at Texas universities.

Stem Cell Research: Rep. Jonathan Stickland wants to defund embryonic stem cell research. This would prohibit research projects funded by National Institutes of Health and by private sources from being conducted in any state-owned research institutions.

Frosh Assault: Right-wing GOP freshman are planning an “assault” on the budget, trying to defund crucial programs under the guise of shoring up the Teacher's Retirement System. FYI, the Teachers are all “thanks, but no thanks.”

Below the jump, follow it all with our CoverItLive Liveblog of the proceedings, tracking progressive organizations and several Democratic representatives. Follow along with our CoverItLive and track key tweets about the floor debate. We've loaded in key progressive organizations and Democratic representatives to track the action as it happens.

About Author

Katherine Haenschen is a PhD candidate at the University of Texas, where she studies political participation on digital media. She previously managed successful candidate, issue, voter registration, and GOTV campaigns in Central Texas. She is also a fan of UCONN women's basketball and breakfast tacos.